8 Days Classic Ethiopia

This 8 days Ethiopia tour will have you visit Horn of Africa’s classic destinations.

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Classic Ethiopia Tour

If you are interested to explore one of the glorious ancient human being civilizations in the continent of Africa, this tour is completely designed for your best and it defiantly suites your interest. You might be found yourself confused through out this trip and continuously asking yourself why this great human being civilizations unable to sustain by the past and present Ethiopian generations? Might be there is the super Natural power interventions on all those great ancient civilizations evidences? Why don’t you join us with this tour and put your own hypothesis for this argument?
Our life time journey begins with the city tour of Addis Ababa. Then followed by the morning flight to Bahir Dar, where we will explore the interesting medieval periods of Lake Tana monasteries and the marvelous Blue Nile falls and then continuing to Gondar for visiting the famous Royal Enclosures. Our discovery of this fascinating historic route also continues to the lovely landscape of Simein Mountains, where you’ll enjoy a half day walking with the troops of Gellad Baboon – Endemic for Ethiopia. After a morning walk through the beautiful scenery of the mountains then we will back to Gondar. Then we will proceed to visit the ancient kingdom of Axum with the mysterious steale parks and the queen of Sheba ruined palaces. Our Journey will also touch the splendid Rock churches of Lalibela, considered as one of the eight wonders of the world and you will have enough time to learn more about these rock churches with your guided tour.

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Tour Dates

Experiences

Highlights

Addis Ababa city sightseeing
Blue Nile falls, and Lake Tanna Monasteries
Explore the wild life and landscape of the Simien Mountains
Exploring the Aksumite Kingdoms in Axum.
Touring through the Lalibela- Rock Hewn Churches.

Route

This 8-day tour is a perfectly crafted, time-efficient journey through Ethiopia's classic northern Historic Route, made possible by a series of domestic flights. The adventure begins in Addis Ababa and flies you to Bahir Dar to explore the island monasteries of Lake Tana and the Blue Nile Falls. You'll then drive to Gondar to see its 17th-century castles before taking a day trip into the breathtaking Simien Mountains.
The itinerary continues with flights to the ancient kingdom of Axum to witness its mysterious stelae and to the sacred town of Lalibela, the tour's ultimate highlight. Here, you will spend two days exploring the magnificent rock-hewn churches, a UNESCO World Heritage site. This tour is the ideal way to experience all the major historical wonders of northern Ethiopia in just over a week.

SEE THE JOURNEY

Itinerary

Day 1 Arrival and Addis Ababa City Tour

On arrival at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, our representative will well come you and give assistance and transfer to your Hotel. Then we will proceed with the city tour. Addis was founded in 1886 by Menelik II, and situated at an elevation of around 2438m which makes a third highest capital city in the world. Addis Ababa enjoys an excellent climate all year round, with an average temperature of 25°C. we will start our site-seeing by National museum which houses some of the country’s historic treasures. The collection of fossils and bones of early hominids discovered in Ethiopia include the 3.5 million-year-old remains of ‘Lucy’, the oldest hominid ever found. Proceed to visit the two major highlights of the city, the Ethnographic Museum and the church of the Holy Trinity, Ethiopia’s main cathedral and home to the remains of the last emperor, Haile Selassie.

Day 2 Fly to Bahir Dar and Visiting Blue Nile Falls and Lake Tanna

An early morning flight to Bahir Dar and a full day visiting in Bahar Dar, capital of the Amhara region situated on the shores of Lake Tana, the largest lake in the country. Bahir Dar is one of the best well-planned cities in Ethiopia. This morning we take a boat trip on the lake to learn the secrets held by the monasteries and churches on the islands. We will visit Ura Kidane Mihret church on Zeghie peninsula. Under the thatched roof are some distinctive colorful paintings of religious scenes, and an impressive display of illuminated bibles written in Ge’ez, the religious language from which Amharic is derived. In the afternoon we will visit Tississat Falls, Amharic for ‘water that smokes’ located about 32km south of Bahir Dar. Due to a nearby hydro electrical power scheme, the waterfalls can no longer be guaranteed to be in full force.

Day 3 Drive to Gondar (UNESCO – World Heritage Site)

This morning we drive for the 3 hours (185km) north to Gondar, the former capital of Ethiopia. Gondar has now become one of Ethiopia’s largest and most impressive cities, with its walled Royal Enclosure. Gondar’s most famous monuments are its exceptionally well preserved 17th-century castles. The largest and best is that of King Fasilidas. It is a stone-built construction with round turrets and wooden balconies. The king also built a remarkable bath a mile or so outside of town known as the ‘Pavilion of Delight’. The Bathhouse of Fasil at which thousands of Ethiopians celebrate Timekat festival every January. This whole complex of buildings is unique in Ethiopia and unlike anything found elsewhere in Africa. This afternoon we’ll also make a visit to the Debre Birhan Selassie church (Light of Trinity) with its sensational angelic ceiling and mural.

Day 4 Visiting the Semien Mountain (UNESCO World Heritage Site)

After breakfast, we drive to Debark on the edge of the Simien Mountains. In the late morning, we drive up into the mountains for some spectacular views of this unique ecosystem. We take an optional 1.5hr walk, mostly flat or downhill, and we will see the Endemic Gelada baboons, Klipspringers, Lammergeyer vultures, and bushbuck. The scenery is truly breathtaking and there will be time for a walk around the Sankaber region of the National Park. The maximum altitude we reach is 3250m. In the afternoon we will drive back to Gondar for our overnight.

Day 5 Fly and Visiting Axum (UNESCO World Heritage Site)

We will take a short flight to the city of Axum, which was once one of the most powerful in the ancient world. Located at the centre of the trading routes between the Mediterranean and India, and the great port of Adulis on the Red Sea, it was economically, politically and technically advanced and at times had control over both sides of the Red Sea. Axum is also the origin of Christianity in Ethiopia and believed to be the resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. The old church of St Mary of Zion was the first church to be built in Sub-Saharan Africa around 330AD. Its ruins can be seen in the precinct ofthe church compound. We visit the famous monolithic stelae of Axum, the tallest one still standing reaches over 21 metres and the greatest one of them all, once 34 metres high now lies toppled on the ground. However, it is still the largest monolith ever erected by man. The subterranean tombs, stone inscriptions of ancient Axumite kings and the small archaeological museum are also living witness of the ancient Axumite history. We will also visit the ruined palace of the Queen of Sheba who is said to have given birth to Menelik the First, fathered by King Solomon, the founder of Ethiopia’s ruling family until the late Emperor Haile Selassie.

Day 6 Fly and Visiting Lalibela (UNESCO World Heritage Site)

We take a short flight to Lalibela and visit the first cluster of Rock Hewn churches in the afternoon. Lalibela, the ‘New Jerusalem’, is thought to have been constructed some 800 years ago by King Lalibela. Lalibela was his capital city, but today it is a small village. Although churches carved in rock are found in other parts of the world, those found in Ethiopia are particularly interesting. Generally, they were excavated on all sides of a rectangle, leaving a large block of granite isolated in the centre. This rock was then shaped and formed both inside and out and the carvings show extremely skillful workmanship and they have been classified as one of the wonders of the world . Each church has a unique architectural style and all are superbly carved. There are 11 rock-cut churches of which the most impressive is Bet Giorgis. It is carved in the form of a Greek cross and It is exceptionally well preserved.

Day 7 Explore Lalibela

Today we will visit the church of Yimrhane Kristos. This exquisite church, a masterpiece of Axumit wood and stone construction is renowned for its interior decoration, it’s beautiful wooden coffer ceiling inlaid with hexagons and medallions with both figurative and geometric motifs. Drive back to Lalibela. In the afternoon, we will visit the remaining rock-hewn churches of Lalibela that include the churches of Bete Gabriel and Rafael, Merkorous, Emanuel and Abba Libanos. Bete Emanuel is the best in this group and exceptionally carved with unique Axumite building features, such as the indentations on the walls, symbols of the multi-storey building taken from the stelae of Axum, monkey heads and false windows. The rest of the day is spent absorbing the atmosphere of this extraordinary town with its Tukul or round houses.

Day 8 Fly Back to Addis Ababa and Departure

This day we will fly back to Addis and free time in the afternoon. In the evening, we will go out to one of the best cultural restaurant for the Farewell Dinner at a traditional restaurant with live traditional dances program. In the morning after your breakfast, transfer to the airport for your departure to Home. Tour End!

Arrival and Addis Ababa City Tour

Addis Ababa

I recently returned from an unforgettable trip to Ethiopia, all thanks to the exceptional service provided by Absolute Ethiopia Tours especially our guide Mr.KIBRU who is well aware of the history and knows each and every corner of the country. From the very beginning, their team demonstrated outstanding professionalism, responsiveness, and genuine care in crafting a perfectly tailored travel experience.

Customer Name

This was one of the most visually and culturally striking destinations we have ever visited. the programme was designed so that we can sample many attractions and really considerate of our needs. every wish we had was realized and although we travelled with two elderly people, every possible problem was thought about and solved in advance. T cannot recommend Absolute Ethiopia tours and our personal guide kibru enough. really an unforgettable journey thanks to them.